The Mississippi Valley Conference (MVC) is a high school athletic conference in southwest Wisconsin. Founded in 1989, the conference and its member schools belong to the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association and are located in the La Crosse-Onalaska-Sparta combined statistical area.
History The Mississippi Valley Conference was formed in 1989 to accommodate for the growing attendance in schools in traditional rural-based conferences and shorten travel distances for its members. Holmen and Onalaska joined from the Coulee Conference, Sparta and Tomah from the South Central Conference, and La Crosse Central High School and Logan High School from the Big Rivers Conference. Shortly after, in 1997, Aquinas High School joined from the Central Wisconsin Catholic Conference of the Wisconsin Independent Schools Athletic Association, a private school athletic league, to become the conference's seventh member. It is the second high school athletic conference in Wisconsin to carry this name, the previous incarnation was based in west central Wisconsin and was in existence from 1933 to 1965.
In 2014, West Salem began competition in the Mississippi Valley Conference for football only, remaining in the Coulee Conference for all other sports. Aquinas left the MVC's football roster in 2019 when they joined the Southwest Wisconsin Activities League as associate members for that sport. The next year, a comprehensive realignment of Wisconsin high school football conferences was implemented by the WIAA with input from the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association to run on a two-year cycle. All six of the MVC's public high schools (Central, Holmen, Logan, Onalaska, Sparta and Tomah) remained in the conference with associate members River Falls (Big Rivers) and West Salem (Coulee) filling out the ranks. River Falls and West Salem returned to their respective conferences for the 2022-2023 realignment cycle with two schools from the Badger Conference (Baraboo and Reedsburg) replacing them. This alignment will stay in effect through at least the 2026-2027 competition cycle.
Sports sponsored The MVC sponsors 19 varsity sports. They are:
Fall: Football, boys' soccer, girls' tennis, volleyball, boys' cross country, girls' cross country and girls' golf Winter: Boys' basketball, girls' basketball, gymnastics, wrestling boys' hockey. Spring: Boys' track, girls' track, boys' golf, boys' tennis, girls' soccer, baseball and softball.
List of member schools
Current members SchoolLocationAffiliationEnrollmentMascotColorsYear JoinedAquinasLa Crosse, WIPrivate (Catholic)330Blugolds 1997HolmenHolmen, WIPublic1,195Vikings 1989La Crosse CentralLa Crosse, WIPublic964Riverhawks 1989La Crosse LoganLa Crosse, WIPublic720Rangers 1989OnalaskaOnalaska, WIPublic916Hilltoppers 1989SpartaSparta, WIPublic904Spartans 1989TomahTomah, WIPublic922Timberwolves 1989
Current associate members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsPrimary ConferenceSport(s)ArcadiaArcadia, WIPublicRaiders CouleeBoys Soccer, Girls SoccerBarabooBaraboo, WIPublicThunderbirds BadgerFootballReedsburgReedsburg, WIPublicBeavers BadgerFootballWest SalemWest Salem, WIPublicPanthers CouleeBoys Soccer, Girls Soccer
Notes
Former associate members SchoolLocationAffiliationMascotColorsJoinedLeftPrimary ConferenceSport(s)River FallsRiver Falls, WIPublicWildcats 20202021Big RiversFootballWest SalemWest Salem, WIPublicPanthers 20202021CouleeFootball
Former co-operative members ProgramLocationNicknameColorsHost SchoolCo-operative MembersJoinedLeftAvalanche HockeyLa Crosse, WIAvalanche AquinasCochrane-Fountain City, Gale-Ettrick-Trempealeau, Holmen, Luther20102025La CrosseLa Crosse, WIRed Rangers La Crosse CentralLa Crosse Logan20102018
Membership timeline
Full members
Football members
Membership map
Sponsored sports +Aquinas●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● Holmen●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●La Crosse Central●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● La Crosse Logan●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● Onalaska●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● Sparta●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● Tomah●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●
Notes
List of state champions
Fall sports +Boys Cross CountrySchoolYearDivisionLa Crosse Central1990Division 1Aquinas2007Division 3Aquinas2018Division 3Aquinas2019Division 3Aquinas2020Division 2 Onalaska2021Division 1 +Girls Cross CountrySchoolYearDivisionLa Crosse Central1989Division 1La Crosse Central1990Division 1 +FootballSchoolYearDivisionAquinas2007Division 5 +Girls GolfSchoolYearDivision Onalaska1989Single DivisionLa Crosse Central1990Single DivisionLa Crosse Central1991Single DivisionLa Crosse Central1992Single DivisionLa Crosse Central1993Single DivisionLa Crosse Central1998Single DivisionAquinas2017Division 2
Winter sports +Boys BasketballSchoolYearDivision Onalaska1992Division 2Aquinas2003Division 3Aquinas2008Division 3Aquinas2011Division 3 Onalaska2012Division 2Aquinas2013Division 3La Crosse Central2017Division 2Aquinas2025Division 4 +Girls BasketballSchoolYearDivision Holmen1995Division 2Aquinas2018Division 4Aquinas2019Division 4 +GymnasticsSchoolYearDivision Onalaska1997Division 2 Onalaska1998Division 2 Holmen2005Division 2 Holmen2006Division 2 +Boys WrestlingSchoolYearDivisionAquinas1999WISAA (Single Division)Aquinas2026Division 3
Spring sports +BaseballSchoolYearDivision La Crosse Logan2001Division 1Aquinas2007Division 3Aquinas2017Division 3Aquinas2024Division 3 +Girls SoccerSchoolYearDivisionAquinas2015Division 4 +SoftballSchoolYearDivision Holmen1999Division 1 La Crosse Logan2015Division 2 +Boys Track & FieldSchoolYearDivisionAquinas2011Division 2Aquinas2019Division 3Aquinas2021Division 3 +Girls Track & FieldSchoolYearDivisionAquinas2012Division 2Aquinas2019Division 3
Summer Sports +BaseballSchoolYearDivision Holmen1990Single Division
List of conference champions
Boys Basketball SchoolQuantityYearsLa Crosse Central101997, 1998, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 Holmen91991, 1992, 1993, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2015, 2025 Onalaska91996, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2026Aquinas82001, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2025 La Crosse Logan71990, 1994, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2008 Tomah12005 Sparta0
Girls Basketball SchoolQuantityYearsAquinas141999, 2001, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026 La Crosse Logan141991, 1992, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 Holmen51996, 1997, 1998, 2004, 2005La Crosse Central51990, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996 Onalaska32013, 2014, 2021 Sparta12006 Tomah11992
Football SchoolQuantityYearsLa Crosse Central121989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1998, 2001, 2009, 2012, 2023, 2024, 2025 Onalaska111996, 1997, 2004, 2006, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 Holmen91992, 2002, 2003, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2024, 2025 La Crosse Logan91994, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2024 Tomah51995, 1999, 2002, 2007, 2011Aquinas21997, 2008 Reedsburg12024River Falls12021West Salem12017 Baraboo0 Sparta0
Boys Hockey SchoolQuantityYears Onalaska82011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Avalanche Hockey52013, 2018, 2023, 2024, 2025 Onalaska/La Crosse42019, 2020, 2022, 2025 Tomah/Sparta22021, 2025La Crosse0 Sparta0 Tomah0
Rivalries The Mississippi Valley Conference has a number of intense rivalries, both based on proximity, and performance.
City Central Vs. Logan - The two La Crosse public schools' intense rivalry is well publicized by local media and is highlighted by football's Battle for the Ark of Victory. Central Vs. Aquinas - A heated battle for city supremacy and the overall city championship. Logan Vs. Aquinas - A heated battle for city supremacy and the overall city championship.
Other main rivalries Holmen Vs. Onalaska - Proximity spices up this rivalry, as the two school districts overlap city boundaries. Both schools also came over from the Coulee Conference together. Tomah Vs. Sparta - Both came over from the South Central Conference and are separated by 17 miles of Interstate 90. The closest conference foe for both teams. Reedsburg Vs. Baraboo - Both moved to the MVC as affiliated members and have one of the longest rivalries in the state.
In addition to these main rivalries, many other rivalries have developed based on different sports and success. In the early 2000s, Holmen and Aquinas had fierce competitions in Boys' Basketball in which tickets were sold out days after going on sale. Additionally, in the early 1990s, Onalaska Vs. Central was a heated matchup in Boys' Basketball. That rivalry was rekindled in the 2010s as both teams regularly competed for state bids. In wrestling, Holmen Vs. Sparta and Holmen Vs. Tomah have come and gone. In Boys' Ice Hockey, Onalaska and Aquinas/Holmen/G-E-T/C-FC hold a battle for the Omni Center rivalry, as both teams play in the same venue.
Many non-conference rivalries are also in the MVC. Onalaska Vs. West Salem, Logan and Central Vs. Eau Claire Memorial and North, Tomah Vs. Black River Falls, and Holmen Vs. G-E-T are all annual football games. Aquinas maintains matchups with old conference members from their WISAA days.
Rivalry Week In many different sports, particularly but not limited to football, basketball, and wrestling, the three big rivalries will frequently be played on the same days, coining the phrase Rivalry Week in football and Rivalry Night in other sports. These rivalries are Central Vs. Logan, Holmen Vs. Onalaska, and Sparta Vs. Tomah. Occasionally, Aquinas will be inserted into a city match up or against Holmen or Onalaska on a Rivalry Night.
References
External links MVC website